Robe worn by an unidentified member of the Ku Klux Klan

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

A Ku Klux Klan robe worn by a member of an undetermined rank. The calf-length robe is made from cotton and has full-length sleeves that are slightly flared near the cuff. Four white, plastic buttons are on the button band at the center front. Sewn over the left breast is a machine embroidered patch with an ivory satin cross outlined in black against a red satin background with a “blood drop,” embroidered in red, oriented vertically in the center of the cross. The black lines on the patch form a cross with a black diamond in the middle of the cross. The design is typically referred to as the "Mystic Insignia of a Klansman" (MIOAK). The robe has an attached circular half cape.

Explore Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture ↗